The more you talk about Sustainability and 5G, I feel more proud to work in the consulting and digital transformation sector. We help organizations take advantage of the full potential of new technologies to, among many other things, leave a better world for future generations. It is true that we live in a moment of strong turbulence. There are technological, social and, of course, environmental changes. All of us, as professionals and citizens, are protagonists and spectators of different scenarios. On the one hand, we are facing an urgent situation in the face of climate change and on the other, a halo of light and hope seems to be glimpsed through 5G. The MWC will start next week and this will be one of the trends that will monopolize numerous conversations. This new mobile technology will increase connection speed, minimize latency (web response time) and exponentially multiply the number of connected devices… but also was born green and can contribute to the future of our planet. The latest recommendations from COP26 they are conclusive. If we don’t act quickly, by the end of this century, the planet’s temperature will have risen so much that human life will become unsustainable. That is why, among other factors, we have to promote the opportunities that technology offers today and that are added to the agreement of the Paris summit. The Communication Service Providers, CSPs, have already been launched and are concentrating their efforts on key areas to promote sustainability with 5G. In the first place, they focus on studying how the core of their businesses can be more environmentally friendly by reducing energy consumption when they move their internal and customer data centers to the cloud; reducing costs, waste and energy consumption by facilitating the implementation of machine learning, artificial intelligence and internet of things technologies; and when they enable energy efficient use cases and emission savings in sectors such as transport, agriculture, industrial, health.

The Communication Service Providers, CSPs, have already been launched and are concentrating their efforts on key areas to promote sustainability with 5G

Second, they focus on making their networks more environmentally efficient, as a circular economy. This includes aspects such as the reuse of existing networks and the renewal of devices. The third point for the success of a sustainable 5G network is the management of internal change around the skills and processes so that your staff is successful and more innovative every day. This responsibility should not only fall on the CSPs, we all have something to contribute. This is where the casting begins so that the sustainability offered by 5G occupies a prominent place on the Communication Service Providers’ agenda. The success of this “5G Premiere” depends on a complex ecosystem, which operates in a new scenario called Open RAN (Radioelectric Access Network), represented, in turn, by different actors: CSPs, partners and administrations to build connectivity in underserved areas, to improve accessibility for consumers and thus bridge the digital divide and foster digital inclusion. A challenge that the global community has not yet been able to solve. The SOS to SUStainability is launched. We are on time for 5G to become the cleanest network in terms of carbon, thus helping to have net zero emissions by 2025.
By Nerea Idirin, Managing Director of Communications, Media and Technology at Accenture